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Sunday, May 4, 2014

The father of a 15-year-old Somali boy who survived a trip from California to Hawaii stowed away in the wheel well of a jet has been denied access to his son days after arriving in Honolulu in a bid to bring him home, a newspaper reported on Friday.

Reuters could not immediately confirm the report.

The boy snuck into the wheel compartment of a Boeing 767 that took off last month from San Jose International Airport. He became one of only a fraction of stowaways to survive in freezing temperatures and low oxygen levels.

He told investigators he wanted to go to Africa to see his mother, according to CNN.

The father arrived on Monday with clean clothing and gifts for the boy, who has been in hospital, but was not allowed to see him, the San Jose Mercury News newspaper reported, citing a family member and a source close to the family.

The father is seeking to take him home to California, the newspaper reported.

Hawaii's Department of Human Services did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the newspaper report on Saturday.

A spokeswoman for the department has said the boy's father arrived in Honolulu, but on Friday said its child welfare agency would not release additional information.

"Citing privacy and confidentiality, Child Welfare Services will not disclose any information regarding the current status of the 15-year-old youth who stowed away in a Hawaiian Airlines wheel well on April 20, 2014," spokeswoman Kayla Rosenfeld said. — Reuters